


Not A Perfect Mother

by princessofthedeadsheep



Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Angst, Family Fluff, Father-Daughter Relationship, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Mother-Son Relationship, Platonic Relationships
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-09-07
Updated: 2013-09-07
Packaged: 2017-12-16 06:38:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 14,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/859005
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/princessofthedeadsheep/pseuds/princessofthedeadsheep
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mother Nature is not a happy spirit, and she think's it's about time someone gave the Guardians a slap of good sense.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Guardians Get Some Sense

**Author's Note:**

> Hello again! This was just a little idea I couldn't get out of my head. I hope you like it! I tried to give Mother Nature elements similar to what might be found in the movie, were she in it. Beta'd by my friends on tumblr, thewhaleridingvulcan, andwhentheskywasopened and captain-of-the-sass.
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of the Guardians or the books by William Joyce

Mother Nature was far from pleased. She didn't like to interfere with her father and the Guardians. Both sides had good and bad for her, so it was really best not to be involved at all. Besides, it really was none of her business unless it affected the seasons, and it had yet to go that far. She had always kept an eye on the goings on, though, because one day, she might be needed.

Jack Frost was her spirit. She may have shared him with the Man in the Moon, but he was still a seasonal spirit. Still hers.

How dare they?

"So I suppose you've learned a lesson today." The Guardians, who were metaphorically licking their wounds in one of the cities that had only just woken, turned to stare at her. "Or at least I hope you have," she continued, "As otherwise I might just have to side with daddy, for once."

"Seraphina, what is it you want?" North was trying to look intimidating, but was currently barely standing on his own. Though she scowled at the name, Mother Nature would not be deterred.

"First, don't call me that. I don't like you much on a good day, and especially not right now." She glared at the rabbit as he opened his mouth to speak. "Shut it kangaroo. If I wanted you to stick your foot into your mouth, I'd take care of it myself." She ignored his offended look at the nickname. As if he didn't deserve worse. "Secondly, how dare you?"

All was said with perfect calm. She was a master of the elements, it would not do to lose control while she was angry.

"What do you mean?" The Tooth Fairy asked, and Seraphina gave her a condescending look.

"I mean, how dare you treat my winter spirit that way?" Their shocked looks only made her angrier. What, they thought that just because she didn't spend every second with the lonely spirit he wasn't hers? That just because he was a guardian he wasn't hers?

She found it was more difficult to keep control of her temper than she had thought it would be.

"Did you think that what you just did was okay?" She asked, incredulous. "Jack is a CHILD! And you've done nothing but belittle him and force him and ignore him and-don't you start!" That damned Bunny had opened his mouth AGAIN looking so ready to argue. Who did he think he was, anyway, she was MOTHER FUCKING NATURE. She could make it snow on his holiday every year for the rest of his immortal life, if, of course, he even managed to make it that long. Fool. "I cannot take care of Jack in the ways in which I might have wished, and we all have your precious moon man to thank for that. But you? You have all had so many chances. So many. I have watched."

And she had. She had watched whenever Jack had tried to break into the North Pole, had watched when he'd tried following one of the Tooth Fairies back to the palace, only to be stopped by the heat and Tooth's little followers. She had seen him lose all control and to find afterwards that someone saw him, only to have them yell at him without even bothering to ask why. She had watched as his attempts had landed him on the naughty list, where he was written off as simply a jokester spirit. She had watched as Jack had increased his attempts, year after year, to receive attention, but be denied by these so called Guardians of Childhood.

"We didn' realize-" Bunny started to grouse.

"Oh, please. How dare you call yourselves the Guardians of Childhood? You have left a child to hold his own for three hundred years, no matter how he has tried to get your attention, no matter how out of hand his attempts have been, acting as any child denied of their needs would," they all looked guilty at that, "And the only time you ever bothered to look at him twice is when it's convenient for you. The only reason he didn't kill you all is because he hasn't lived long enough to become as bitter as my father has!" She shouted it, and she knew that was what was really having an impact. She was known more for her icy temper than her fiery one, though she possessed one only if she couldn't (or shouldn't) possess the other, for fear of creating unnatural natural disasters.

"The only saving grace you had, the ONLY reason I did not interfere at all, was the Sandman. He was the best of all of you. He and I understand each other, to an extent, because he made an effort. Why do you think Jack was so upset after he disappeared? At least the Sandman understood what it was when no one would listen to you." She knew that would be a blow as well. Sandman did not show it often, but it was really frustrating to never be listened to just because he couldn't talk. That didn't mean he had nothing to say, after all. Not that the Guardians would have thought of that.

"I'll never forgive any of you for these atrocities! You forced him into this! He could have been saved from being a part of this at all! But no, all of a sudden you need something, so you swoop him up and act like he should be so honored that you deigned to get off your high horses to acknowledge him for once! You ignore him when he says no! And even though he helped you, you continue to draw unjust, unsupported conclusions about his character, based on assumptions you made while you were ignoring the fact that he was a child so lonely he misbehaved for any morsel of attention."

She took a deep breath. She hadn't yelled this hard in centuries! And the rainfall was only a minor inconvenience...so far.

"And now you've sent him off, emotionally vulnerable and alone, to the one spirit that actually has enough leverage to convince him to take up his side. I hope you're proud of yourselves."

She didn't give them a chance to reply before she slipped back into the elements. Damn that had felt good. She continued to watch, waiting, seeing if they'd gotten the message.

"She's right." Tooth's already drooping wings failed to hold any of her weight any longer, as many more children woke up without an Easter. "We shouldn't have sent Jack away. There are ways to manipulate the teeth..." Her eyes widened as she figured out what she'd just said, what that meant.

"What?" Bunny demanded.

"He probably didn't even realize... the teeth, the containers, they can be used to draw in the person. If Pitch found Jack's teeth and triggered it... He wouldn't have been able to ignore it, especially since he doesn't remember. The pull to find his teeth would have been too strong!" She put her head in her hands, as the other two Guardians gave her horrified looks.

"What have we done?" North asked in despair.

Yes, what have you done indeed. Seraphina thought as she moved away from the Guardians, down to where she felt Jack's particular magic.

It wasn't unexpected that he would choose the South Pole. It was quiet and lonely, here. It fit how he felt, whenever he came, she knew. There was little she didn't. She did, after all, have an entire planet to look after, much like how the Man in the Moon did. She could just be more hands on than him.

She arrived in time to see her father snap her spirit's staff. This did not please her. Were both sides just destined to anger her needlessly? As her father walked away, she signaled to him to meet her a little ways away.

"Was that really necessary?" She asked as soon as he appeared before her.

"Seraphina." He looked amused. "A pleasure."

"You aren't answering the question father."

"I certainly thought so. You're little spirit has been getting in my way." Seraphina just sighed. There was a reason, she reminded herself, that she didn't pick sides. It never helped her any.

"Fine. Whatever. But you're not allowed to kill my spirit." She glared at him. She was not afraid of her father. That would be too contrary. "His current injuries will not kill him. And neither shall you. Or you will have to deal with me. Agreed?"

"Agreed." Her father knew when things were to his benefit as well, and it helped that he assumed that he'd already won this little war.

"Good. Good eve, father. Let the nightmares feast." She spoke her usual goodbye. It struck her as ironic, in this instance.

"Let the spirits be merry, my dear child." His customary response. She knew he was just laughing hysterically on the inside.

They parted ways, and she went to watch Jack. Her spirit. He was sitting up, eyes glazed over with his memories. Than he gasped, coming back to himself, excited beyond what she'd seen in so long.

"I'm a Guardian." His voice was amazed. She smiled. So, her child had chosen a side? It was for him then. It was for him. When he put the pieces of his staff together, forcing his power through it, she gave him the smallest thing he didn't know he needed. Permission. She watched her child, excited and urgent, go on his own journey, make his own decision, for once.

No one need know that she had even visited.


	2. Manny Gets His Due

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Truthfully, I'm not half as fond of this one as I was with the first chapter, but it'll suffice. Also, I know the spirits have weird names that may or may not have been around at the time. These spirits are newer, so I took some liberties with their names.
> 
> Disclaimer: I don't own, so please don't sue me.

She was not a great mother to Jack. She knew that. The interference from the Man in the Moon had greatly hindered her own abilities in communicating with her spirit. It was difficult to talk to a spirit when you weren't even allowed to go within twenty feet of them without permission. It was even more difficult to raise one. Combine that with her duties, and well, raising Jack had been just short of impossible. She had done her best.

But sometimes one's best was not enough. The best she could do had not been enough for Jack. How could the boy still be so kind, so forgiving? A part of her recognized this was may have been why he had been chosen at all.

Manny didn't always think about time, or companionship, the same way a newly born spirit would. He was older and used to little interaction, so much so, he had forgotten what that meant. The largest problem though, was he didn't understand children. Observing and understanding were two very different things, and either Manny had never quite reached the understanding of children, or he simply didn't care if a kid suffered for a couple centuries.

That bastard better pray he could prove it was the first, rather than the second, because she was about ready to hunt him down if she had to take over all the world's space stations to do it.

"Mother?" Ember, her summer spirit, had come up to her. They were about to have a meeting of the seasonal spirits, and were only waiting for Jack now.

"Yes child?" She worked on keeping her voice even, but Ember's slight twitch told her she hadn't been completely successful.

"Why are we having a meeting today? Normally you wait until the..." Ember trailed off in alarm as Seraphina's eyes turned a flaming red, similar to Ember's own.

"I have my reasons. Now, all of you, listen!" her voice was just a little cold for her children's comfort, but her thoughts had not improved her already sour mood. "You all will have control for most of the year now. Starting the second you leave, I want cloud coverage at night to pretty much cover the planet. If you can see that Jackass in the fucking moon and he can see a living person, you move a cloud up in there and block him out. I don't want him picking anymore spirits. I've had enough of his meddling!" unable to stop herself, she jerked up from her throne, pacing. She was far less restrained in her own realm, with her children. She could not lose control of her powers here, so she could feel any emotional extreme she wanted, and there was no consequence. So long as she stayed in her realm, of course. That was the hard part.

"Mother, I'm not entirely sure that that is the best idea." Benevuto spoke. He was her spring spirit. She always felt a pang of guilt whenever she heard his name. She tried to name all her spirits in the same way, basing it off of both their origins and their jobs, but Benny (as he had been nicknamed) had really come worse off in that deal.

"I find I agree with Benny." Pashia, surprised them all by speaking up. "This is about what has happened to our brother, yes? What happened to Jack, after the Moon's interference, that's what's caused this, right?"

Seraphina stared at her little girl for a moment. She had actually been made just before Jack, only about a decade before. It was part of the reason why Seraphina had allowed some of Jack's care to be taken out of her hands. She had expected that the Man in the Moon would arrange something for Jack, but no, she thought, he never did. She pulled Pashia into her arms, holding her closely as her spirit shyly circled her arms around her mother. The other two came over and joined the hug. It was sweet, and warm, here in a place where she and her spirits could be at peace. She heard a slight noise and didn't look up.

"Join us Jack. You are a part of this family too." She met his eyes over his sister's deer hide colored hair and raised one of her hands out to him. "Join us." He did, hesitantly. As soon as her hand touched his, she yanked him into her arms as well, pulling all of her children onto her lap. It wasn't completely comfortable, but it worked. They stayed there for quite some time. For spirits, it was useless to count hours, and needs were rare. They slept sporadically and usually only a few times a year, gained energy from their elements and did not require food, did not require movement. So they stayed.

This was the way her family should have been. All of her spirits, together. None of them should ever have been lonely or afraid. It broke her heart to have one of her children treated that way. She didn't even realize that she'd started to rock, to cry, silent tears, thinking of all the things she wished she could have done, all the regrets she had for her winter spirit. The only one to notice was Ember, and she merely wiped her mother's tears off her face, absorbing them in the sleeve of her thin orange robe.

"My children. I love you, all of you, you know that right?" They all gave positive responses of some sort. "If you ever need anything, anything at all, then please come to me. I do not care what it is, come to me." All of her spirits nodded. Seraphina sighed, and, releasing them, started a far more official meeting, discussing movement of the planet and the effects from global warming and so on. She watched as her spirits debated without her, pros and cons of this cold front and that heat wave. It was strange, really, how easily they got along. They were so different. Jack, loud and boisterous, Ember, friendly but frankly a bit of a know it all who had a fiery temper similar to her mother's, Benny, blunt and uncaring, Pashia, quiet and equally blunt in her observations. They all fit, a puzzle of mismatched children who needed family liked some needed air to breathe and food to live. A certain regret for what had been lost remained, but what had been gained outweighed it in many ways.

Jack finally had that. He looked so happy, but it wasn't because of her, oh no. It had little to do with her. That was what made her the most upset. Manny had taken her spirit away from her. It was worse than anything she had ever experienced before, in all her centuries, and it was far worse than she had imagined.

Her spirits were all fairly new. Before, she had been in control of far older spirits, but then...

Things changed. Sometimes they had to; change was as inevitable as the seasons. It was best not to dwell on it.

"Mother? Mother!" Ember was waving her hand emphatically in front of her face.

"Oh, yes! What can I do for you darling?"

"We were wondering if you wanted us to go through with that, uh idea, you had before." Seraphina had to seriously consider this.

"Yes and no. We will not go as far as I suggested, but I want to limit the contact, alright?" Her spirits nodded and prepared to leave. Goodness, had she really been out of it long enough for them to finish the meeting? "Jack, will you hold on a minute?" He stayed, and the others said hurried goodbyes, understanding what this meant.

"Yes mother?" He asked, then yelped when she whisked him back into her arms, "Mother!"

"I can't help it!" She held him tightly, and felt him return the hug just as hard. She pulled back to look into his eyes. "You come to me if you ever need anything, honey, you know that right? You can always come to me. I'll always listen."

"Yeah." Jack gave her a loving smile. "I know mom. I will." She let him go, hoping he meant it. It was the only way she could ever see him outside of a seasonal meeting.

Once Jack had left, Seraphina dropped down into her throne, made of crackled leaves and firm flowers, frosted lightly to the touch. Everything about her realm spoke of the seasons, even her. But unlike her usual bright coloring, she was currently more like the Snow Queen than herself, white hair and white eyes filled with misery. Jack would never be hers, and why not? Because of him, because of that stupid Man in the Moon! She didn't feel like moving, at the moment. Instead she waited for the moon's light to fall upon her corner of earth.

He was not very bright that night. It was probably the work of her spirits, she thought proudly, doing their best to dim his influence. She parted and cleared the sky for her realm though. She wouldn't have any misunderstandings.

"I don't think I've ever hated you more, moon man." She couldn't stop the glare. "You took him from me."

You gave me permission. The voice rang in her head, a robotic like speech.

"To aid, yes, to create, but you did more than that. Though I did not begrudge your right to make him a Guardian, you begrudged mine to be his mother."

He needed-

"Care!" She shouted it up to him, her hair and eyes rapidly shading from white to pink to orange to red. "He needed family! You took that away from him!"

Yet he is well-

"Oh don't you try to that. You can't possibly believe that, and if you do you're a fool! HE. IS. NOT. WELL! HE IS AFRAID AND DOES NOT TRUST! HE IS ANGRY AND EASILY MANIPULATED BY HIS DOUBT! DOUBT HE ONLY HAS BECAUSE YOU GAVE ME NO REAL POWER OVER MY OWN SPIRIT! I TRUSTED YOU TO HELP HIM AND YOU DID NOTHING!"

I am sorry. I did not realize that it would have such an effect on him. Many spirits are fine without care, the previous seasons, for instance, as well as the sprites, the groundhog-

"THE GROUNDHOG ISN'T EVEN YOUR SPIRIT! IT ISN'T ME YOU SHOULD BE APOLOGIZING TO, YOU BASTARD! IT'S THE SPIRIT WHOM YOU LEFT ALONE, USING OTHER SPIRITS, WHO ALL KNEW WHY THEY WERE HERE AND WHAT THEY HAD TO DO AND WHY THEY WEREN'T SEEN AS YOUR EXAMPLE! AND I'VE NOTICED THAT YOU'VE YET TO ADDRESS WHY YOU NEVER LET ME NEAR HIM! SO RIDDLE ME THIS, MOON MAN. WHO IS SUPPOSED TO BE AN ALL KNOWING BEING AND YET CAN'T EVEN ADD TWO AND TWO? YOU GET THREE GUESSES, AND THE FIRST TWO DON'T COUNT!"

...I see you have been keeping up with the children.

"A WHOLE LOT BETTER THAN YOU HAVE, YOU BASTARD!" She forced herself to calm her voice, "If this ever happens again, there will be no force that can stop me. I will claim all your spirits as my own, and I will take. You. Down. I hope I'm understood, moon man."

She got no verbal answer, but she could tell by the way the moonlight flashed that he did understand.

"I expect you to go and give your long overdue apology to our son." She turned to go back to her realm, than stopped, turned suddenly as though an idea had just struck her. "Oh and by the way," she thought she saw the moon pulse with some sort of fearful light as her eyes and hair flashed an icicle blue. "If you think that his Guardianship gives you full reign, moon man, think again. He doesn't depend on belief, because I never gave my permission for our son to be a Guardian." Her smile was feral. "So should I ever decide that the Guardians aren't doing a very good job...I might just decide it isn't fit he be one of them." She didn't wait for the reply.

Let's see them trump that card.


	3. Pitch Gets A Scolding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think!
> 
> Disclaimer: Does it really need saying that I own nothing? *sobs and stares at the price of college tuition*

"Come here father." Seraphina sighed as she tugged at his arm, pulling him inside. He was exhausted-fighting off his own nightmares had taken all the strength that was left out of him. He was leaning against a tree barely inside her realm, nearly falling off of it whenever his eyes closed.

"Come to bed father. You'll recover faster there than sleeping on the ground."

He sighed this time, and allowed her to pull him up. "I don't know what I'd do without you, Seraphina."

"You'd manage, I'm sure." She said shortly.

She was still somewhat angry at her father for all he had done. Half pulling him inside, she maneuvered towards his room. When she finally got her father into his web of shadows she spoke again.

"You know, this could have been avoided."

"If you plan to scold me, Sera, than I'd rather it wait. I'm too exhausted to have this conversation."

"Which is precisely why we are having it now, you'll just try to get out of it once you have your strength back. Just listen to me for a few minutes father." She sighed heavily.

"I don't approve of many of your methods, but your job is necessary. We all accept that. You can't be greedy father, you can't destroy the balance just because you're lonely. You know you can always come to me, and most of my spirits have no problems with you."

"Except for Frost, the one most like me."

"That is your own fault." Her eyes and hair flared red even as she tried to stop them.

"He has every right to dislike you after what you have done. Do you truly think that he would be accepting after you harmed others? Jack is very compassionate. Did you expect him to welcome someone planning on hurting the children of the world? He is a child as well, and as you've noticed, he cares about them. You can't tell me you didn't notice."

Her father said nothing. They both knew there was nothing he really could say.

"I love you, even if you are neither the perfect man nor the perfect father, but I can't instantly forgive you for everything. Jack did not deserve to be punished. I don't want you near him for at least a century, do you hear me father? Any sooner and you and I will be having unpleasant dealings. I may not be willing to threaten you as I do others, but we both know there are things I can do that you would hate. Don't force my hand father."

She began to leave, turning only when he called to her.

"If it is any consolation, my dear," he began, "I was upset that he didn't want to join me, and I reacted that way more because I felt betrayed. Another member of my family was unwilling to stay by my side."

"How can you say that father?" she didn't bother to stop the color change this time.

"I don't pick sides, but when have I betrayed you? I am independent, I can choose to do what I like, and I chose to help you when I can. I chose to allow you into my home to recover. I chose to not punish you as I have the other spirits that have hurt my winter spirit. You want me to stay by your side like a child? You want Jack to do so, regardless of the fact that we are both separate beings that have lives and duties of our own?" She glared at him, her mind a whirling ball of anger.

"You are greedy, father, if you want something so permanent. You're nightmares are the only things required to remain by your side, and even now, they only betray you because of your own selfishness and greed! There are children-and adults!-who believe in the boogeyman. Just because these are not the dark ages, just because that power is lost to you, I think you've let it all go to your head. You have more than most father. Refusing to see it is YOUR problem. Stop dragging everyone else into your mess."

She didn't give him the chance to speak as she slammed the door. It made a noise like shattering ice, but remained intact as she stalked away.

When she returned the next day, her temper had ebbed. Mostly. Her father was wrapped in the shadows, barely visible, but she saw his golden eyes as she walked in.

"Seraphina..." he sighed, pulling himself up so he was more visible. "You were right."

She merely raised an eyebrow. He couldn't stop himself from sighing again. "About Jack. I shouldn't have been so cruel to him. I will do my best to make amends, both with him and with you."

Seraphina studied him. He looked sincere enough, and she knew that he wouldn't wish to be separated from her.

"Alright. I can't let you near Jack right now, he is in too precarious a position, and I don't want to make him uncomfortable nor unhappy. We'll give him time to settle, and then we will tell him how you are related."

He smiled gratefully at her, and internally she sighed. Such a daddy's girl she scolded herself. Still, she didn't want to alienate her father. He was, all in all, a good man. Many would say that he was horrible only because of his job, but in truth, when he wasn't practically an all-powerful god over the earth, he was very similar to the man she remembered.

That, perhaps, was the greatest tragedy of their family.


	4. North and Bunny Forget Good Sense

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was afraid I wouldn't have this one out for a while. It's been a bit of a tough one to write, but hopefully you'll like it! It's also the longest chapter I've written yet, by about 100 words. Hurrah! I hope this one doesn't fall flat. I don't know how well I did the yelling portion of this one. Jack's reactions may be off. I don't know, this may just be a horrible chapter. Obviously I'm nervous about this one, so if you like it, please let me know!
> 
> Disclaimer: If I owned Rise of the Guardians and the books, I could probably get someone else to drive me everywhere.

"Father, if you plan to do nothing but complain, then please, spare me. I've had my fill of the guardians and the Man in the Moon. You're ruining my good mood." She pouted as he laughed at her. "It's not funny! I'm entirely serious right now!"

"I know you are my dear." He gave her a gentle pat on the arm.

Without the power he had possessed before, she found her father far more personable. It was far better than having to deal with him when he was at full power, which she readily acknowledged.

"I don't think I've ever seen you that angry." He was way too amused.

"I've seen you angrier." That shut him up, at least.

"Seraphina" he sighed, "What am I going to do with you and your vivacious spirits?"

She just smiled.

She wasn't exactly uncomfortable with her father, but she still had not completely forgiven him for what he'd done. It put unnecessary strains on the relationship.

"You know I love you, right dear?" the echo of her own words made her close her eyes almost in a subtle rebuke. They were not a normal family, never could be. It was one thing she regretted more than any other.

"Of course I do, father." She smiled at him, opening her eyes to look into his calm golden ones, currently filled quite a bit with misery.

"It's getting late. We both need to make our rounds. We shouldn't be so-" she straightened in her throne, cut off by the sudden knowledge that someone had entered her realm. The cold core and power was all she needed to know it was Jack. Her father had stiffened as well.

"I'd know those fears anywhere."

"Hide. Please father, it is too soon for him. Don't show yourself. I will speak to my son." She could tell that he wanted to protest, but he held his tongue and slipped into the shadows. She called the wind to her, knowing the winter wind would be the one to answer her and trying to see if it couldn't tell her what was wrong. All it could say was that Jack had called it suddenly from North's workshop.

Oh this was going to be trouble, she could feel it.

"Jack." He had stopped in one of her hallways, leaning against the wall and looking miserable. "What has happened?"

"The Guardians hate me!" he looked like he was crumbling.

"Why would they hate you my darling?"

"I got really angry at them, and then I accidently froze half the workshop!"

She could understand his horror, then. Not only was it a major blow to the friendships he'd built, as far as he was concerned, but such a loss of control had not happened since his first decade, which had to be embarrassing on top of it all. But what had they done to get him that upset?

She almost didn't want to know.

"Why were you angry Jack?" He flinched. He really must not have wished for her to know, but there was no real way for her to let this go. If he honestly thought she'd let him go back after they'd made him that upset, they all had another thing coming.

"They said... They may have mentioned..." he stumbled off into silence, causing Seraphina to sigh. She just pulled him into her arms, rocking him back and forth, feeling him relax in her embrace. She noted her father had not retreated to his room. Instead, he was making pictures with his sand behind Jack's back. North and Bunny were in the picture, she gave a slight nod to show she got the message, and it switched into a picture of a snowflake, she saw it melt some... she frowned.

"Winter over?" She mouthed at him, and he nodded, and then pointed to Jack and made an X in the sand. At first, she didn't quite get it, but when it clicked, she couldn't stop the rapid change in her colors. Even her dress, where the flowers decorating it normally stayed the same kaleidoscope of colors turned bright blood red in her anger.

North and Bunnymund had said that since winter was over there was no use for Jack, or he had no job to do, or something similar.

Did they NEVER learn? Cursing several Gods and Goddesses in her mind, she took a calming breath, and looked down at Jack.

"Did they say something about it being between seasons?"

"How-how did you-" as Jack's wide eyes pulled themselves off of her chest, he suddenly realized the change she had taken. "Don't be mad at them! I-I don't want to lose them and if you go after them-"

"If they do not believe you when you tell them the truth, then they are not friends worth having. Tell me what happened. Exactly Jack. Exactly."

"Well they were saying that I should probably stay at North's more often now that it's the off season, so that none of the other spirits would get the chance to go after me. But they tried to give me a curfew and make it so I could only go out once or twice a week-"

"Once or twice a week? For how long?"

"Only a couple hours-"

"What did they say when you told them you couldn't do that?"

"Stuff about taking one for the team and not risking myself."

Oh they were going to pay dearly for this. They had tried to trap her winter spirit. It didn't matter if they thought his job was less at this time. They couldn't suddenly insist on all these rules. It wasn't fair to Jack, who first of all, needed to literally be in his element to continue gaining energy, and second of all, could not remain permanently in any indoor residence while retaining his control.

She had no doubt they would have forced him to, had these rules been enacted. Jack was good at his job. He'd have risked his friends for it, if he'd been forced to make the choice.

Oh she was going to make the Guardians suffer for this.

"-Then they started in on how they were going to have to watch my food habits because I obviously am not getting enough-" she had been wrong before. She'd make them suffer, and then she was going to kill them.

"-So I accidently froze half the globe room because they weren't listening-"

"I think I've heard enough," she pulled him up and called the wind to her, which pulled them both up and towards the North Pole.

...

Inside of the workshop, North and Bunny, as well as quite a few yetis and elves, were trying to maneuver out of and through the ice.

"Bloody Frostbite." He grumbled, "I'll bet he did this on purpose to."

"I didn't! It was an accident!" The entire room looked up to see Jack, curled into the side of...Mother Nature. All the other spirits cowered. The elves and yeti that were free decided now was the time to do other things-namely be out of the globe room.

"That's quite alright Jack. You actually did far less damage than I was expecting. I thought they'd be pretty much literally up to their eyeballs. Even losing control, you suppressed a great deal of power, and kept them safe enough." She beamed down at the squirming spirit. Her hair and eyes, though still red, had lightened a few shades, while her dress released a few warm colors into its design.

"I'm quite proud of you." He blushed blue. He looked so sweet like that.

"Now." She scowled, turning entirely red again as she looked at the Guardians, "what is this, exactly, I'm hearing about some sort of house arrest?"

"It wasn't house arrest! He's just makin'-" He stopped talking when the ice he'd nearly escaped starting snaking back up his leg.

"I wouldn't finish that sentence if I were you, rabbit."

Jack was tugging at her side "You really don't need to be so harsh, it's okay..."

He quieted at her look.

"Okay, Okay! You think this is okay?" Jack looked away as she began to curse.

"What language is that?" Jack never did manage to hone his curiosity.

"Romanian. I'll teach you later if you really want to know. But right now, THIS is what we need to focus on." She waved her hands and most of the ice disappeared, releasing all the elves and yeti.

"Leave."

The yeti and elves scurried out as though her father had suddenly appeared in front of them with thousands of nightmares. The only ones still around were the trapped Guardians.

"Jack, how about you go and help the yeti and elves who still have some ice on them?"

"But-"

"Now, Jack." Reluctantly, Jack left, looking somewhat embarrassed and probably wishing he hadn't brought her. It was strange, but it made her really feel like a mother to know she'd caused such emotions.

"Alright, first off." She gave them a glare, "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING? DO YOU THINK THIS IS SOME SORT OF GAME YOU EGOTISTICAL PRICKS? THERE ARE PLACES THAT SNOW YEAR ROUND, THERE ARE PLACES THAT ARE HAVING AUTUMN, WHICH JACK HELPS WITH, THERE ARE ALSO CURRENTS AND WIND MOVEMENTS THAT JACK DIRECTS OR AIDS WITH. HE IS A BUSY SPIRIT WITH AN IMPORTANT JOB, TREAT HIM AS SUCH, OR," she forced herself to speak in a calmer, sickly sweet voice. "I'll castrate you."

It took a moment for the threat in her words to sink into the two Guardians opposite her. It may have been petty, but how could she not enjoy watching their eyes widen and the slight shift they made to protect themselves? Honestly, it brought joy to her heart.

"Second, Jack is also a spirit you've IGNORED FOR THREE CENTURIES. THE FACT THAT HE MAY NOT BE WILLING TO PROTEST SOMETHING DOES NOT MEAN YOU CAN GO THROUGH WITH IT, NOR THAT IT'S RIGHT. IT ONLY MEANS JACK IS UNWILLING TO RISK YOUR FOOLISH FRIENDSHSIPS FOR A FIGHT, THOUGH WHY HE WANTS TO BE FRIENDS WITH SUCH UPPITY BIGOTS, I DON'T REALLY UNDERSTAND. I expect you to help me in discouraging that behavior."

She glanced toward the door, ignoring their scared looks at her constant change between yelling and more restrained scolding, not sure if she was hoping Jack was listening in or if she was hoping he wasn't.

"Third, don't you DARE pretend you're his parents." She waved her hand at Bunny, igniting the very tip of his boomerang and making them both shout before the fire snuffed out, unable to find something to burn.

"As much as I hate to even think about it...Jack raised himself."

She closed her eyes, and felt as she began to regain her usual colors, her voice falling in volume to match her mood.

"Jack is an independent soul, and he's lived alone and been alone for too long to be held down. Have him check in every other day or something, but don't tie him down to any one place. He goes where he wants to, when he wants to. It's who he is. We can't change that."

She swallowed, sorrow overtaking her. "The past cannot be changed." She sighed bitterly.

"I am going to speak with Jack, and if he stays, I will be coming by to check on him. He better be healthy and happy by the time I get back."

"How can we make healthy if he does not eat? Near impossible, no?" North asked, blinding her with his ignorance. She couldn't decide whether or not she wanted to slap a hand to her face or to his.

She was really glad she didn't give them much chance to talk. She wouldn't have been able to leave for months, she'd be yelling at them so much. She gave a long sigh, than talked to the two of them in a slow voice most used when talking to small children.

"When Jack was mortal, he was skinny. He's a spirit now, so he's going to be forever skinny. It doesn't matter how much he eats. Did you honestly never figure that out? God, I'm surprised he didn't freeze your idiotic mouths shut."

She shook her head. It seemed that they just put on thousands of blinders when it came to Jack, if this kept up, they'd end up hurting him instead of helping him.

"After I have spoken to Jack, I expect the both of you to apologize to him. I'm holding both of you to that. Or else you'll find that Jack is no longer within your realm of influence. Don't make me turn him against you by pointing out just exactly what you've all done wrong by him... including the things he doesn't know about."

With that, she turned and walked straight over to the door Jack had disappeared behind, throwing one last glare behind her as she put her hand on the doorknob.


	5. A Much Needed Conversation

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you all like this chapter, please let me know what you think!
> 
> Disclaimer: I refer you to the last four chapter disclaimers

Jack was on the floor in front of her when she succeeded in opening the door. Sighing, she only raised an eyebrow at him, earning a sheepish grin in return.

"How much did you hear, then?"

"All of your yelling...and the part about me being independent...some of it anyway..." Jack seemed reluctant to look at her, instead focusing on the elves and yeti scurrying at the other end of the workshop (far FAR away from the door, Seraphina was pleased to see).

"Well, this is one conversation I don't want an audience to. Let's go flying." She pushed open the nearest window, inviting the wind to play with them as she and Jack pushed out into the open air. She smiled as Jack whooped and whirled in the air, her dress turning back into its normal rainbow spread, her hair turning white and eyes blue, to match his. They both settled into a smooth rhythm over the snow, traveling lazily on the churning wind.

"Did you really mean what you said?" Jack asked suddenly.

"I mean everything I say, but I assume you meant something specifically?"

"What you said about me raising myself?"

"As a spirit with no memories, you were pretty much forced to. You didn't have anything to really fall back on, other than the old imprints of your personality." She sighed, letting herself fall back, the wind adjusting the air currents so that her hair flew behind her head instead of all over. She looked upwards, towards the moon, currently hidden by snow clouds and rippling vapor of intense condensation. Something she supposed she was doing accidentally.

"I also meant it when I said that you were likely to let them to get away with things they shouldn't just because you want to be their friend." She didn't need to be looking at him to see him fidget. "You can't let them walk all over you Jack. In the end, you'll all only end up resenting each other, if you do that. If you don't want to do something, tell them. If you think something isn't fair, let them know, and make sure they know why. Communication is an important part of every relationship Jack."

"I know I shouldn't be so...doormat like, I guess? But I don't want them to push me away. I don't want to be alone again!"

"You'll never be alone again. I know you've been alone before, and I wish I could take back the moon's decision for that alone, but I can't change that now. Jack," she turned to him, pulled him into a hug as the wind gently swayed, pulling them down bit by bit, "if I have to make a thousand winter sprites to keep you company, I will. You will never be alone again, that's a promise."

"Okay." Jack burrowed into her, his body relaxing as a smile flitted on the edges of his mouth. They held that way for a moment, swaying as though they were in a mid-air hammock, before Jack pulled away and gave her a sour look. "Did you have to go and do that though? That was really embarrassing. Bunny will never let me live it down that I went running to my mother."

"Oh? I'll have to keep an eye on that rabbit then. Yes, Jack, I did have to do that. They needed a reminder."

"A reminder of what?"

"A lesson they should have learned months ago, but appear to have forgotten just as easily, those fools," she huffed. Jack shifted and stared at her angry face, trailing down towards the workshop as it started to click.

"This isn't the first time you've done this, is it?"

"No, it's not." She couldn't help but be amused by the growing horror on his face. "Is that a problem?"

"That's so...so...embarrassing!" He buried his face into his hands.

"Really?"

"MOOOOOM!"

"I love it when you call me that." She ignored his exasperated and highly embarrassed tone. It was worth it, really, just to see how the frost covered his face as he realized she'd been yelling at people for upsetting him. "And it won't be the last time, either. I fully expect there will be more problems that I'll need to take care of."

"But I really don't need you to do that!" He said hurriedly.

"No, but I'm gonna let you in on a little secret Jack." She leaned in front of his face, still covered in frost, and grinned. "That's what family is for. Making you exasperated and embarrassed because they care way too much to let it lie when people hurt you. Well, proper family, anyway."

They descended in silence, Jack still blushing frost, Seraphina smiling nostalgically, thinking of how Jack had called her mom in that tone. It made her feel so much closer to him all of a sudden. They landed on the roof of the globe room, close to the window that the Man in the Moon was usually able to speak through.

"Go collect your apologies from those two. Make sure you're satisfied. And Jack?" He risked glancing up at her, his cheeks finally freeing themselves of the blush. "I will pull you out of the Guardians if they don't treat you right. If you're hiding how they treat you from me, I will cut off your contact with them. I can't allow you to have toxic relationships. They need to treat you right. They need to treat you with care and respect. If they don't, they don't deserve to have you."

She leaned down and kissed his forehead, giving him another firm hug for good measure.

"Go on now. I'm sure they're waiting."

"Alright." He started toward the window, then stopped and turned. "Oh! I almost forgot!" He pulled something out of his pocket, held it out. "Do you know what this is? I found it in the room North has set up for me here."

She peered at the object in his open palm, and prayed she'd managed to stop her shocked reaction in time. It was one of her frost flowers, shaped, she realized, by black dream sand. Shaped by the nightmare sand her father had created. Yet it did not give off any type of a negative magical signature. Instead, it seemed to produce a warmth. She felt it deep within herself, a warmth of affection and love that she remembered most from the days before she became a spirit. The frost flower resembled a dolphin, if she wasn't mistaken.

"I can't say I know for sure, Jack. I think," she paused, weighing her words very carefully, knowing full well what Jack still thought of his grandfather, "I think that that is an apology."

"An apology." He seemed so surprised. "From who?"

"I think, for now, that's best left up to you to figure out." She hesitated again, wondering if she was possibly pushing this too far. "I hope you won't let the Guardians penchant for jumping to conclusions based on first impressions affect you, Jack."

Poor Jack was even more confused, she noted. "What do you mean? I wouldn't-"

"On your own, dear, on your own. This is definitely something I think you need to figure out. Keep it with you though. Maybe you'll figure it out quicker. It definitely isn't dangerous, at least."

Jack, though still thoroughly confused, nodded and jumped into the wind, allowing it to throw him through the open window. She waited, she didn't really think about how long. Ten minutes, twenty? All that mattered was that Jack had not yet come back out, and any necessary apologies would be over. She had the wind guide her away from the workshop, sliding into her realm with admirable grace.

"Father! Father, where are you?"

"You called?" he spoke from behind her. She hated it when he did that.

"You gave Jack a gift." She turned to him, ignoring the fact that she'd just shrieked and jumped what must have been a mile a moment before.

"I did." His face held no trace of his usual sneer. "I'm trying to start on making it up to him. He'll find that gift very useful."

"What does it do?"

"No patience at all Sera! I thought I raised you better!"

"Father!" she glowered at him, giving him a subtle reminder he was still deeply in the doghouse. He sighed.

"It will keep him safe from unsavory characters, mostly of the non-sentient variety."

"You..." she couldn't find the words. He'd given Jack protection. Something even she could only offer on a conditional basis, and only for very limited periods of time. She felt her eyes water as she attempted to process this. Her father really meant it. He was really trying to make it up to them.

It was times like this that she truly remembered that her father was still himself, somewhere. He wasn't entirely the king of shadows and nightmares. He was still her father, the man who had told her bedtime stories and tucked her in at night and promised to protect her from those things.

"Oh...Oh father." she pulled him forward and into a hug (and wasn't she giving an awful lot of those lately), a quick one, squeezing once, firmly, before she released him. "Let's go dancing. The way we used to, when I was little?" she smiled up at him, tears evaporating off her face but still leaving streaks.

"Of course" he spoke with his usual grace. Together, they moved through her domain, dancing steps memorized so long ago it was like breathing.


	6. Unexpected Explanations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to stop putting disclaimers y'all should know I don't own it by now.

Jack hadn't moved in what appeared to be several hours. She was surprised-usually the winter spirit moved even when he was standing still. She had not expected such an adverse reaction to this information.

"You can't be serious." He said at last.

"If I wasn't serious, I certainly wouldn't have let you go into a shocked silence for hours." She frowned at him. "Do you want to sit down? You're looking sort of peaky-well, for you, anyway."

He shook his head, but the news was obviously really getting to him. He stumbled backwards and into a chair she'd created within the first ten minutes his visit, with the thought of him fainting in mind. Since shock didn't harm spirits as it did humans, she wasn't worried about physical reactions beyond that.

"But how? Why? Why would-why would he-"

"You'll have to ask him. I cannot fathom the thought process that would make him think any of this was a good idea."

"He broke my staff!"

"Yes, I remember. Like I said, you'll have to ask him why."

"But my dear Seraphina, you already know why." Jack gave a cry of surprise, jumping out of the chair and landing on top of it in a defensive posture. Sera just looked at him.

"Is it my place to say it?"

"You're my grandfather." Jack interjected, staring at Pitch.

"Yes."

"You tried to cover the world in fear and darkness."

"There is more to that story than you know."

"How could that matter?" Jack's voice was rising. He looked about as willing to forgive as the damned Easter Bunny had been.

"It all started with you Jack. Everything starts with you." She looked at her father, surprised.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I know you remember my dear Seraphina. This has all been about vengeance, and it all started with the winter spirit not even Mother Nature could touch."

"What are you talking about Pitch?" Jack glared at him, but there was a wariness in the way he held himself, his position shifting more towards fleeing than fighting. Seraphina was getting a horrible feeling. She squeezed her eyes shut.

"Tell me you didn't, father. Tell me you didn't."

"I'd never seen you so upset. You've always been more likely to yell than to cry. You didn't stop crying for three days, and you made it rain in the North Pole! How could I let him get away with that?"

"Oh, please say you didn't." Why, oh why did he have to go about things this way? He couldn't have, he shouldn't have... but she was more than willing to bet he had.

"I'm sorry Seraphina." He spoke quietly, but that didn't soften the blow of what this meant. What he had done, no matter the reason...

"What's going on? Mom, what does this mean?"

"The Man in the Moon didn't play fair with you Jack." Her father was by her side, his hand on her shoulder as she resisted the urge to just break down and cry. She opened her eyes to see Jack, more wary than before, staring at them both with disbelieving blue eyes.

"What do you mean?" Jack asked slowly, looking as though he wasn't particularly sure he wanted the answer.

"He means you should have been mine." She whispered. She couldn't keep her eyes open, couldn't look at him as he realized the truth. "You should have been my spirit, to guide and teach, as I did your brother and sisters. You should have been mine. But he took you from me. Twisted my words and ruined everything!"

She pushed away from her father, walked over to the flowers lining her wall, touching them and watching as they wilted in response to her mood.

"You mean the Man in the Moon? He took me from you? What are you talking about?"

"He can't control the seasons Jack. He isn't all powerful." Her father began. "He had to ask permission to make a winter spirit. When Seraphina gave him permission, she did not think of the possible consequences."

"Why would he do that?" She didn't move, instead staring at the flowers as they turned to husks, a slow degrading that matched her fading colors. "I never imagined he would be so cruel, even if he was not doing so on purpose. It was cruelty, none the less. I cannot understand why anyone would do such a thing."

"Cruel?" Jack's hesitant voice asked.

"The first time I tried to speak with you, you couldn't see me." She forced the horrid memory away, knowing now wasn't the time to break down. "I called and I called, but you looked right through me. Not even the winter wind could tell you I was there."

"When?" Jack's voice was suddenly very tense.

"You were almost half a century by then. I'd been told that you would be taken care of. When I got there, that obviously wasn't the case. There was nothing I could do Jack." She whirled around, racing to him and standing imploringly before his wide-eyed figure. "Nothing. I could only get into contact with you if you came to me or if I called a season meeting. There was nothing I could do!"

"So that's why-why-" and she could see as he figured it out, half understood comments or conversations finally fitting into place after three hundred years of having nowhere to go.

"I couldn't allow the moon to get away with it. I didn't tell Seraphina, but I plotted my revenge. He never should have done that to you, or to her." She looked at her father, not sure if she wanted to hit him or hug him.

"You shouldn't have done that!" she said fiercely, just as Jack said "Thank you."

Both turned towards Jack in shock, but he just shrugged.

"If he hadn't done it, I'd still be alone right? You wouldn't be able to visit me."

"Well, yes." She acknowledged with a nod. "The spell Manny used has been undone. He cannot recast it, either."

"Then I'm glad you did it. Maybe you shouldn't have, but now that it's done? Oh well." He shrugged. "I can't just forgive you for the rest, though." He added, looking at his grandfather. "A lot of the stuff you did was unnecessary, and you did break my staff."

"I understand." He nodded. Jack rose.

"I need to think about this. I'll come back."

"You're always welcome to come back, Jack. Anytime." Seraphina smiled at him, her lip trembling. "Always. Just call when you need either of us." Jack nodded, before the wind swept him off, through her hallways and out of her domain.

She and her father stayed in their places for a moment, silently contemplating what had happened.

"He took that entirely too well." Her father commented absently.

"He hasn't really processed any of it yet. There will be a storm somewhere unexpected tonight, possibly tomorrow. After that... well his next visit may very well be unpleasant. I doubt, once he realizes the full implications of what he's learned here, he'll be very happy with anyone."

Her father gave a "hmm" in response and she could barely keep from rolling her eyes.

"Did you ever intend to tell me?" She asked, unable to stop herself.

"After I had won would have been a good time, I thought." He said dryly. She couldn't help the small laugh that bubbled out, even as she pulled her arms together, hugging herself and hoping that this would be the end of all the mixed up emotions that seemed to plaque the boy that she should have helped raise.


	7. Not So Simple

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is by far the longest chapter in the whole thing, which given how long it took to post, is a way in which I hope to make it up to all of you. The ending of the chapter hasn't been beta'd yet, so it may still have some kinks. I'll work them out once I've gotten to my beta readers, but it's been ages (not on this site but on ff.net) so I decided to post this anyway.

Seraphina was at her wits end. Jack had been throwing a tantrum all over the northern hemisphere, and she both loathed to stop it and loathed to let it continue. She could hardly blame him for his anger, but she couldn't allow the balance of the world to go off for much longer. So, with great reluctance, she made her way to Spain where a storm was currently waging with Jack in the middle.

"You know," she called "I think the residents of Madrid would like to leave their homes sometime soon."

"Mother." He acknowledged her. Though without the vigor of his normal greeting, it was a good sign that he wasn't being cold towards her.

"I know you must be upset-" She began.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Jack asked furiously. "Ever since I was reborn people have just been using me!"

Seraphina sighed. "I wish I could say you're wrong." Subtly, she began to raise the surrounding temperature, so that the snow would melt easier when she brought about its end.

"Why do things have to be so complicated?" Jack looked ready to chuck his staff at the ground.

"Because this is about people Jack. This is about life. No one is entirely evil, and no one is entirely good. I know it's easier to see things in black and white terms, but that's not how things are. Thinking that way will only get you hurt." Jack didn't look at her. The storm had slowed down some, but she didn't risk trying to come closer to comfort him.

"Jack, you have to understand, you haven't had to deal with real relationships in a long time. They take work, and you won't always get them right. That's just how it is. You haven't had the time to really become accustomed to this sort of life. I think you need to step back, some. Take a breath. We're all going to make mistakes here." They both fell silent as the North wind calmed around them, the snow easing in its descent.

"Why didn't you ever tell me?" He asked at length.

"About what?"

"Why didn't you tell me about the spell the Man in the Moon put on me?" She made sure to look him in the eye when she answered.

"Because I couldn't. If I could have, I would have, but there was no way for me to even suitably hint around the fact that you'd been spellbound. Any time me or anyone else tried...well, I suppose the closest sensation would be that of choking. It isn't pleasant. The only ones who could have spoken to you without any reservation, I believe, were the Guardians. Not that I am sure, but... they are the most likely to have been able to, out of all the world." She had tried to soften the blow, but judging by the fact that the storm had increased again, she had failed. She thought she saw tears in his eyes, but he turned too quickly for her to be sure.

"Why didn't the Guardians ever come to me? Why didn't the moon ever talk to me?"

"I shouldn't explain for them Jack, I can't say for certain. As far as the Man in the Moon? I do not think he really understands." She sighed, and Jack looked back at her. His eyes were dry but dull, resigned. "That doesn't excuse him, but you have to take it into account. To him, to me, to many spirits, three hundred years is barely a drop in the pond. Why, father and I have been around longer than Manny, if you'll believe it. The older you are Jack, the less time really makes a difference. For humans, of course, it's the opposite, but they will die. We, usually, will not. So three hundred years for you dragged on, but three hundred years for Manny? Why they just flew by. Blink and you miss it. I have a feeling Manny did a lot of blinking."

The storm finally died, becoming just the lightest of snowfalls. She sat in the snow, sinking in before Jack joined her. He curled into her side with his eyes tightly shut. She pulled his staff from the awkward position between them and laid it in the snow beside him. Running her hands through his hair, she continued.

"Manny doesn't usually make spirits the way he made you. You are unique. You are the first elemental spirit he made, and you were the first to die before he saved you. Those both make a big difference I don't think-I know-he didn't take into account. Which of course, resulted in the loss of your memory, and your lack of knowledge in our world. When I create my elementals, they have a base knowledge of how to work their abilities and the spirit world in general. They still require training and practice, but they can begin to do their jobs immediately with little-if any-trouble. I know that you had trouble with the North wind, didn't even know of other spirits for years, and that you don't know of all of your abilities, even now. These are things you would have known, had you been born from me. And no," she continued when he looked up at her hopefully, "not even I know what you are fully capable of. Manny made you, not me."

Sighing heavily, he buried his face into her side again.

"The Guardians..." she grimaced "They are the ones you will certainly have to speak to. I will not tell you rumors I've heard, because I cannot say how accurate they are. I do know however, that Bunnymund's dislike of you after the incident in '68 certainly did not help matters. I'm unsure as to what extent they knew about you. I cannot be sure. You must ask them."

"I did." He said, surprising her. "They didn't really want to talk about it. But I think I made them feel too guilty, so they went ahead and talked about it anyway. Mostly, they said, they just didn't talk to me. They were also the reason I had such a horrible reputation."

"They're the reason?" She asked with much amusement in her voice. His cheeks frosted, embarrassment overriding the anger he'd been feeling for so long.

"Well, they certainly had a hand in it. They basically made up the minds of a lot of spirits before I even met them. My meeting with the St. Patrick's Day leprechaun suddenly makes a lot more sense."

"I thought Bunnymund had driven the lot of them off." Jack shrugged.

"I don't know, but he's the only leprechaun I've ever seen. Anyway, the Guardians all seemed very ashamed of what they did. They apologized a lot. When I told them about Pitch being my grandfather though, they freaked out." Seraphina sighed, closing her eyes as she pulled him closer.

"I didn't imagine that they'd be thrilled to hear that."

"They said how I shouldn't trust him that he was a liar and he'd use me now that I knew he was family. Bunny mentioned something about the death of the Pooka too, I think."

"Yes, well. I can see why Bunny would still be upset. It is perhaps the most unforgivable thing my father has ever done. Though there are others who would disagree."

"What did he do? He didn't really kill the Pooka, did he? What is a Pooka, anyway?"

"The Pooka were once a great warrior race, from what I know. I only ever met one of the clans. But I do know that Bunnymund is definitely the last of them. I'm afraid father did kill all the rest. It's difficult to explain why. He was not quite himself, or so I always say." She sighed as he squirmed away from her to look into her eyes.

"How can you be so nice to him when he did all that?" Jack asked incredulously. "I mean that isn't even half of the things that Pitch did according to the Guardians-"

"Let me tell you a story Jack." She interrupted, pulling him back, reluctantly, into her arms. She began the story with her head on top of his. "Many a millennia ago, when I was just a mortal child, I lived with my father in a small village that was tasked with guarding the most horrid of creatures, the fearlings. Much like their name, it was their goal to spread fear to all that they touched. Long ago, they had been captured by the Golden Armies. It was...perhaps not the height of the Golden Age, but close, when I was born. My mother died when I was very young, so I have few memories of her. It was only me and my father. I was only about seven, I think-"

"You think?"

"We did not keep track of time as they do now. As I was saying, I was about seven when my father failed to come home one day. I waited till the late evening for him, but he never came. I heard a ruckus in the center of the village. I left our home to find it was being attacked by fearlings. My father had been the one guarding them at the time. I found out much later that he had been convinced that the fearlings had trapped me in the cage with them. He opened it to save me.

"For many years after, I had thought my father had perished. One of the other guards saved me, and took me away. I never heard or saw any of the things that my father did after he was first possessed by the fearlings."

"Possessed? Is that how he became Pitch Black? He was possessed?"

"Oh yes. He didn't get any choice in the matter. Similar to your own rebirth, as it were. His, however, was full of pain and anguish and the knowledge he'd been tricked into releasing some of the most feared creatures of the Golden Age...come to think of it, I'm pretty sure the Golden Age ended not long after that." She looked up at the peaking moon thoughtfully.

"Yes, I'd say I'd have been ten and three when Manny was born. I was only ten and four when the Tsar Lunar became our Man in the Moon, marking the end of the Golden Age."

"Tsar Lunar? That's his name?"

"Lunar is his name, love. Tsar is his title. He inherited it when-has no one told you this story?" Jack shook his head furiously.

"I never really thought about how other spirits came about. I kind of figured they just got made, like I thought I was."

"Well, perhaps it is a story for another time. Maybe next time we have a seasonal meeting. I was saying, I was brought to the other village and left with a lovely blind woman who had a love of nature. I was given to her to help her around the house, and possibly since no one else would have me... not that I minded. She was a wonderful woman, who taught me much. During my time with her, I heard many stories of what my father did that night, as well as the many nights that followed.

"When he was first possessed by the fearlings, mad with power, the nightmare king raged through entire planets, destroying them in his eagerness to feed himself with fear. Why he left our planet, I do not know. He doesn't know either. Perhaps it's because there was enough of him left he didn't want to destroy me. I like to think that's what did it, but maybe it was just a whim of the nightmares." She went quiet for a moment, watching the snow fall around them as Jack sat, oddly still in her arms. Her voice was nearly a whisper when she started up again.

"The Pooka protected most of the planets my father ravaged, so my father destroyed them, too. Father was so very powerful. It was frightening. The Golden Age, mostly a peaceful time, looked as though it would end in the extinction of many species. It didn't turn out that way, obviously, but it came close." She was silent for a moment.

"How did you find out?" Jack asked so quietly she almost didn't hear him.

"Sometimes the soldiers would come to her to talk, and if I could, I would listen at the door to the garden, or just outside the archway of the kitchen. I preferred the garden door, actually-much safer, better cover-but that night I ended up next to the kitchen archway. I overheard the soldiers that day speak of what was happening on the other planets. Grandma-that's what she had me call her-asked them about my father, if he was responsible. I think it was because she knew I was there, actually. I doubt I ever really heard anything she did not intend. I think she wanted me to know. I was ten and five at the time. It was devastating to hear what had become of my father. But I was young, and I couldn't accept what my father had done. I forgave him.

"I headed to Earth when I was twenty and three, determined to protect that which I had learned to appreciate. I lived here for only six months before I became a spirit. I became the earth, as they say. A part of all places.

"By that time, father had disappeared, as well as the Moon's personal Guardian, Nightlight. For the longest time, no one knew what had happened, only that the Golden Age had ended with the Tsar dead and the Man in the Moon stranded on his parents' ship, the broken Moon Clipper, known now only as the Moon. I thought that it was the end of it all. We all did. When father rose again, we were all shocked, but I do not think any were more shocked than I when I met him again. He was far from the man I remembered. I went to him shortly after he gained his power in the Dark Ages. It was an action I regretted.

"He hadn't even known I was alive-he was under the impression I had died centuries ago in the attack on the village, or even if I had escaped, had died of disease, childbirth or old age.

"'Seraphina' he said to me. 'You look so beautiful, you are nature inspired.' He hugged me, and I hugged him back. At first, it was as though he was still the father I knew, the one who told me stories at night and danced with me in an empty house. But then I asked him to stop hurting the world so, to return the balance.

"'The balance has already been broken too long without me. I AM returning the balance!' He threw me out and banned me from returning to his lair. I tried to talk to him, but he was even worse when basking in the fear of the world. His responses became more violent. He never hurt me, but...you have to understand that this man had the memories of my father, but his personality was fueled by fearlings. Emotionally, he cut me deeply in the hopes of convincing me to join him. I never did. He called me a traitor and many other horrid things I dare not repeat. But he was not my father. The fearlings had repressed him.

"I returned to my own lair to find the Guardians waiting. They begged for my help in defeating my father. I refused, just as I refused him, and told them they had to light their own way. At great cost, they defeated my father. I was not expecting him to come to me, but come he did. He apologized." She paused here, and turned Jack's head up towards her own. "He apologized profusely, and I almost didn't accept it."

"He was horrid to you. You shouldn't have forgiven him at all."

"A similar thing might be said about you and Bunnymund." This caused Jack to pause, looking away from her as he struggled to find a counter argument. "He hurt you with his words, and though he never actually physically hurt you, he came close more than once. Still, he used words as his weapons, and knowing just what your hopes were, used them to crush you, emotionally. It isn't that different from what my father tried to do, and yet you have forgiven him rather quickly. Not seamlessly, but quickly."

She cupped his chin and made him look her in the eyes. "I am telling you this story for a reason Jack. I see myself in you, in some ways. Even as Mother Nature, I have had to fight my way up, and I was lonely for a long time. I missed my father and felt grief over what he did, and not every spirit was kind to me when they learned I was the daughter of such a feared spirit. It took quite a long time before I was able to really make a comfortable place in the spirit world, and my father's actions in the Dark Ages strained many of the relationships I had formed. It was a very stressful time, and I admit to being starved for affection and lonely myself. So I took my father in, just as you accepted the Guardians.

"Imagine my surprise at finding that a Pitch without power was not a bad thing at all. Suddenly, my father was back. Without the power the fearlings had fueled him with, his own mind was able to come through more clearly. The man I had always loved had come back. So I cared for him, and I forgave him for his sins. It was something I desperately wanted to do, and as I constantly told myself, the man who hurt me was not the one in front of me. It was not entirely true. Jack, love, while I know what my father said to you before was true, I also know it is not the full truth that you deserve."

Jack narrowed his eyes. She knew he was tired of secrets and people keeping things from him, and so she was quick to reassure him. "It was definitely true. I know that whatever his plans were, he changed them for you. But I also know it takes longer than a mere two hundred or so years to be able to turn dream sand into nightmare sand so efficiently. My best guess is that he was experimenting, as we all do, with his abilities, and he had plans of getting more powerful, naturally. As much as I wished to pretend it was not true, the fearlings within him still had some control. Whatever he may have planned must not have been an immediate priority, and I do not think he spent as much time as would be expected on those plans before he knew about you. It wouldn't have mattered if it had been a thousand years, it would have happened eventually, but there is a reason for everything he does, and when father learned of you, he pushed his plans further in order to benefit you."

"But when we were in Antarctica, he attacked me!"

"Yes, but you are forgetting, he was a lot more powerful by then. Hardly at full power, but more than enough that his desires as my father were controlled by the desires of the fearlings. He attacked you, because though he accepts you as his grandson-as shown by the gifts he's given you-the connection was not strong enough to override the fearlings control. My father knew me for the first seven years of my life. He knew you for maybe a grand total of an hour all together, if we speak only of actual contact rather than rumor and hearsay. The desire to protect me from harm was far stronger than the desire to protect you."

"So that's why he-wait, wait." Jack's eyes grew wide. "The gifts? He's the one leaving them?"

"I did say they were an apology." She knew that by now, Jack had received more gifts from her father, though she was uncertain of what they were. Jack had likely planned to ask her about them when he had come to her lair, but it had not come up before she had told him the truth of his spiritual heritage.

"So he's making it up to me by giving me weird accessories?" Jack asked. It took some effort not to start laughing.

"Protection Jack. Other things as well, I am sure, but the one you showed me was an item of protection. You must also remember that Father and I come from a very different time period on an entirely different planet. Gender roles and traditions were quite different.

"But Jack, before we get entirely off topic, what I wanted you to understand here is that we all make mistakes, and we all feel alone sometimes. I mean, just look at the Guardians. Overworked and isolated, they were knocked out in a single Easter. While my father's plan was admittedly quite good, it should have also been more work. The fact that it was not surprised more than a few other spirits. It suggests that the Guardians have been pulling themselves too far away as well. I think you may be good for them Jack, if they treat you well. Just as they may be good for you. I also think you should give my father a chance as well, but all of those decisions are yours to make." Although she silently vowed to pull him from the Guardians if he ever came running back to her so upset again. She let go of him and he picked up his staff and jumped out of her lap.

"Thanks mom. I'll think about it, but..." He sighed. "I don't think I should forget all that they did to me."

"And when did I say it was necessary to forgive and forget?" she asked, rather alarmed as she pushed herself up again. "That's just human nonsense! Forgive Jack, but never forget. Forgetting leads to repeating history. Do not forget what my father is capable of nor when he is capable of it. The same applies to the Guardians. To me, as well. You'll get yourself hurt being so forgiving but not nearly as vigilant. Be aware of what actions others may take. Be prepared."

He looked a lot more at ease after hearing that. "Thanks." He swayed for a minute, looking uncertain. He then spoke quietly, obviously worried about how she'd take the question. "Why can't Pitch control the fearlings? Couldn't he take control from them the way they did him?"

She looked away, over towards the sun that was just peaking over the horizon before she answered. "No Jack. It isn't that simple. He was a mortal man. All his extra power comes from the fearlings. Had it been someone like Bunnymund or Toothina, then it might have been possible. However the reason mortal men were used as guards was because if the fearlings were to take over someone who had as much power as they, if they could not fight it, then they would truly be an impenetrable force. Father's humanity limits the fearlings in some ways, but it prevents him from truly being able to fight magic as strong as theirs."

Jack was silent for a moment. "I'm sorry."

She turned back to him and ruffled his hair. "Do not worry about it. What's done is done. Now, I think you have a certain job to do. Perhaps some unexpected snow in France. I don't think that will cause any trouble." He nodded and turned away, hoping on a delighted North wind and already rising away. "Oh, and Jack." He turned back to her, still rising. "No more blizzards."

He grinned.


	8. The Beginning of the Story

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I know I said there would be two more chapters... Well I spent three months trying to write chapter eight. It just wasn't happening. So instead, I'm posting the last chapter, and I might add a sequel or something later instead.

Seraphina was feeling just somewhat melancholy. She had just parted ways with her Autumn spirit, allowing her to begin confronting the world on her own. Her little Pashia was such a sweetheart, and she was going to miss her dearly. Still, she needed to look ahead. It wasn’t like she would never see Pashia again or some such nonsense. Plus she had a winter spirit she needed to introduce herself to. 

She had been weary of giving over his creation to the Man in the Moon, but she could not help Pashia and handle winter herself, especially as she used the time between seasons to enhance their knowledge and teach them their limits within her realm. It had been a shame to have lost her control over her most recent winter spirit, but she rarely dwelled on those. They burned themselves out and ceased their spiritual existence or became another type of spirit entirely-like the snow queen, whom she at least had a good relationship with (Old Man Winter, not so much).

Coming to the lake in Burgess, she spotted Jack Frost easily. He was balancing on his staff in the middle of the lake, the wind swirling around him. It was a new moon, making the light that surrounded them seem more spiritual than normal, though it never really seemed dark when there was snow, not to her, not here.  
She walked forward, calling out to the spirit. He didn’t answer. Suddenly, her body froze. It was as if everything inside of her had turned to stone. She had not experienced anything like this in centuries…

The boy turned to face her and he did nothing. No reaction. Then he jumped off of his staff, gliding around a few feet before going right through her.  
Being walked through was considered the worst experience a spirit could ever go through. It was truly like not existing, for a moment. As though the world had suddenly dissipated to nothing but that moment, that brief second, and it burned like the fires of hell and left a cold, hollow feeling deep in the pit of the stomach that burned like acid around the edges. It rarely lasted more than a few seconds, but worlds could pass in such a time. Things die in single seconds. And that burning cold never quite left one entirely. Not ever.

She gasped, motion suddenly returning to her body, forcing her backward and away from him. She heard him sigh as her head reeled.  
“Take me to Russia, wind? It’s due for a storm.”

The wind curled around her, apologizing continually, lamenting that the winter child could not see her, saying that the winter child had been born alone, those few decades ago, and had had no company since. The wind told her of the boy’s being walked through and the terrible reactions he’d had.  
Seraphina couldn’t breathe. It was a rather a good thing she didn’t have to. She stumbled back into her own realm, falling through Earth until she landed in her own front hall, horrified tears beginning to fall down her face.

“Father! Father!” she called desperately, knowing her father would hear the call through the shadows. She stumbled into her throne, a sob wrenching her throat as her grey hair and eyes extended to the colors in her dress and throne.

“Seraphina! What’s wrong?” her father hurriedly moved to her, pulling her into his arms and rocking her as he had when she was a child. He was rather alarmed at her lack of control, she knew, as she rarely ever broke down, hadn’t in centuries.

For a while, she could say nothing, but finally she was able to choke out the words “It’s awful, it’s horrible!” the explanation found its way, tumbling out of her mouth as she tried to find comfort in his embrace. Her father had been warm as a human, but now lacked any type of temperature. It was more of a comforting pressure, a presence, than anything else.

“Manny offered to help me make a winter spirit, and since I was still helping my new Autumn spirit, I agreed, because I wanted time to work with her. I just went to see the winter spirit, and I…he…” she gave a dense sob that seemed to encompass the world’s heartache in a single sound “He walked right through me! He cast a spell onto Jack, and now there is nothing that I can do for my own spirit! Not even I have the power to contradict him here, not even with my own spirit! I can’t believe it father! The wind says he’s been alone for decades! The Man in the Moon stole my own spirit, and I basically let him do it!”  
Seraphina cried in her father’s arms for three days. There was a blizzard in Russia those same three days, coincidently enough, and later, to the bafflement of everyone, it rained in the North Pole, and snowed in South Asia.

And though she would not know it for many decades, during those days, a plan formed in the mind of Pitch Black. A plan involving the Guardians and dream sand turned black…and revenge that he hadn’t thought he’d take for some time yet.


End file.
